Troy University Athletics
Saturday, October 18
Troy, Ala.
2 p.m.
Troy University
vs
Appalachian State
Players Mentioned
RB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DE
/ Football
QB
/ Football
DE
/ Football
WR
/ Football
Photo by: Joshua Thurston
Troy Hosts Sun Belt Newcomer Appalachian State Saturday
10/16/2014 12:39:00 PM | Football
TROY, Alabama – Riding high after a Homecoming victory last weekend, Troy welcomes Sun Belt newcomer Appalachian State to Veterans Memorial Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:04 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
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Pregame festivities get underway at 11:45 a.m. with Trojan Walk at the corner of George Wallace Drive and University Avenue. In Tailgate Terrace, the Troy Sports Radio Network Pregame Show will broadcast live from 12-1 p.m. and the Troy men's and women's basketball teams will be signing posters beginning at 12:30 p.m.
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Troy will honor the 1984 NCAA Division II National Championship football team between the first and second quarter. Led by Troy University Sports Hall of Fame players Mike Turk and Ted Horstead, defensive coordinator Rick Rhoades and head coach Chan Gailey, the 1984 Trojans went 12-1 capped by a dramatic 18-17 victory over North Dakota State in the title game. Ted Clem kicked a 50-yard field goal as time expired to give the Trojans their second national championship in school history.
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Troy handled New Mexico State from start to finish last weekend and dominated all three phases of the game. The Trojans won the most important stat as the final score read 41-24 in the home team's favor, but all of the underlying numbers also tilted towards the Trojans.
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Troy (1-5, 1-1 Sun Belt) outgained New Mexico State 571-395, the Trojans outrushed their opponent 360-123, Troy forced four turnovers and sacked the Aggies four times, and Chandler Worthy returned a kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown.
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"The game was highly competitive and those guys played hard and our guys played hard," Troy head coach Larry Blakeney said at his weekly press conference. "Our guys played hard with emotion, like you're supposed to play the game. We were able to get out with a pretty solid win at the end. I'm very proud of the coaches and the players and I'm proud to be sitting here today with a chance to say we won a game."
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Fast forward to this weekend where Appalachian State will bring one the of the Sun Belt's top offenses into town. The Mountaineers are third in the league averaging 30.5 points per game and fourth with 439.0 yards of total offense per game.
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Since starting Sun Belt play, the Troy defense has forced six turnovers and sacked the opposing quarterback eight times in just two games. The Trojans have also held league opponents to just 76 yards on the ground and allowed touchdowns on just two of six red zone opportunities.
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It's been the play of defensive ends Jamal Stadom and Tyler Roberts that have led Troy's defensive charge. Stadom, the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week, has 17 tackles, four sacks, a pair of fumble recoveries and a forced fumble in his two league games, while Roberts has 11 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and a forced fumble.
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Offensively, quarterback Brandon Silvers has been responsible for five touchdowns (four passing and one rushing) over the past two games and has completed 71.9 percent of his passes in Troy's two Sun Belt contests.
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Worthy has been his go-to target as the senior has 10 catches for 117 yards and three touchdowns in league play while Bryan Holmes has nine grabs for 108 yards and K.D. Edenfield has eight catches for 67 yards.
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A big piece to Troy's success against New Mexico State was the ground game, which churned out a boisterous 360 yards, the most by a Troy team since 2008. Leading the ground game was running back Brandon Burks who torched the Aggies for 176 yards on just 10 carries; his 17.6 yards-per-carry average ranks as the second highest in a game in Troy history.
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Appalachian State (1-5, 0-2) enters Saturday's contest having lost fourth straight games after falling in overtime to Liberty last weekend. The Mountaineers have been outscored 81-35 in their two Sun Belt games (South Alabama & Georgia Southern).
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The Mountaineers are led offensively by quarterback Taylor Lamb who has completed 60.5 percentage of his passes for 1,232 yards and eight touchdowns to go along with six interceptions. Leading running back Marcus Cox (446 yards and six touchdowns) has been pushed behind freshman Terrence Upshaw (348 yards and two touchdowns) on App State's depth chart heading into the game.
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The App State secondary has caused some early problems for opposing quarterbacks led by three interceptions from both Doug Middleton and Joel Ross. John Law leads the Mountaineers with 53 tackles.
Â
Pregame festivities get underway at 11:45 a.m. with Trojan Walk at the corner of George Wallace Drive and University Avenue. In Tailgate Terrace, the Troy Sports Radio Network Pregame Show will broadcast live from 12-1 p.m. and the Troy men's and women's basketball teams will be signing posters beginning at 12:30 p.m.
Â
Troy will honor the 1984 NCAA Division II National Championship football team between the first and second quarter. Led by Troy University Sports Hall of Fame players Mike Turk and Ted Horstead, defensive coordinator Rick Rhoades and head coach Chan Gailey, the 1984 Trojans went 12-1 capped by a dramatic 18-17 victory over North Dakota State in the title game. Ted Clem kicked a 50-yard field goal as time expired to give the Trojans their second national championship in school history.
Â
Troy handled New Mexico State from start to finish last weekend and dominated all three phases of the game. The Trojans won the most important stat as the final score read 41-24 in the home team's favor, but all of the underlying numbers also tilted towards the Trojans.
Â
Troy (1-5, 1-1 Sun Belt) outgained New Mexico State 571-395, the Trojans outrushed their opponent 360-123, Troy forced four turnovers and sacked the Aggies four times, and Chandler Worthy returned a kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown.
Â
"The game was highly competitive and those guys played hard and our guys played hard," Troy head coach Larry Blakeney said at his weekly press conference. "Our guys played hard with emotion, like you're supposed to play the game. We were able to get out with a pretty solid win at the end. I'm very proud of the coaches and the players and I'm proud to be sitting here today with a chance to say we won a game."
Â
Fast forward to this weekend where Appalachian State will bring one the of the Sun Belt's top offenses into town. The Mountaineers are third in the league averaging 30.5 points per game and fourth with 439.0 yards of total offense per game.
Â
Since starting Sun Belt play, the Troy defense has forced six turnovers and sacked the opposing quarterback eight times in just two games. The Trojans have also held league opponents to just 76 yards on the ground and allowed touchdowns on just two of six red zone opportunities.
Â
It's been the play of defensive ends Jamal Stadom and Tyler Roberts that have led Troy's defensive charge. Stadom, the Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week, has 17 tackles, four sacks, a pair of fumble recoveries and a forced fumble in his two league games, while Roberts has 11 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, three sacks and a forced fumble.
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Offensively, quarterback Brandon Silvers has been responsible for five touchdowns (four passing and one rushing) over the past two games and has completed 71.9 percent of his passes in Troy's two Sun Belt contests.
Â
Worthy has been his go-to target as the senior has 10 catches for 117 yards and three touchdowns in league play while Bryan Holmes has nine grabs for 108 yards and K.D. Edenfield has eight catches for 67 yards.
Â
A big piece to Troy's success against New Mexico State was the ground game, which churned out a boisterous 360 yards, the most by a Troy team since 2008. Leading the ground game was running back Brandon Burks who torched the Aggies for 176 yards on just 10 carries; his 17.6 yards-per-carry average ranks as the second highest in a game in Troy history.
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Appalachian State (1-5, 0-2) enters Saturday's contest having lost fourth straight games after falling in overtime to Liberty last weekend. The Mountaineers have been outscored 81-35 in their two Sun Belt games (South Alabama & Georgia Southern).
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The Mountaineers are led offensively by quarterback Taylor Lamb who has completed 60.5 percentage of his passes for 1,232 yards and eight touchdowns to go along with six interceptions. Leading running back Marcus Cox (446 yards and six touchdowns) has been pushed behind freshman Terrence Upshaw (348 yards and two touchdowns) on App State's depth chart heading into the game.
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The App State secondary has caused some early problems for opposing quarterbacks led by three interceptions from both Doug Middleton and Joel Ross. John Law leads the Mountaineers with 53 tackles.
Players Postgame (Georgia State)
Thursday, February 05
Scott Cross Postgame (Georgia State)
Thursday, February 05
Troy vs. App State (Full Highlights)
Thursday, February 05
Player Postgame Press Conference (Zay Dyer, Emani Jenkins) - App State
Thursday, February 05